Journalism
Sylhet: Workshop on fact-checking, verification techniques for health journalists held
Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio and Communication (BNNRC) organised a two-day-long workshop in Sylhet city on fact-checking and verification techniques of health journalism.The Asia Foundation-supported workshop took place during September 20-21. It aimed to enhance the capacity of journalists, working to create and publish objective, insightful and influential news on health management.It also wanted to encourage the journalists to acquire modern knowledge and skills in data verification and presentation in creating neutral and balanced health reports.Twenty journalists from national dailies, online news portals, and television channels participated in the workshop.Abu Rushd Md Ruhul Amin, the senior news editor of Banglavision, Al Azad, CEO of Syltv, discussed the issues.Md Zakaria, senior program manager of The Aisa Foundation, was present in the training and highlighted the importance of fact-checking and verification, especially in health journalism during the Covid-19 Pandemic.The workshop focused on health journalism in the current context, reliable sources, sources in health journalism, information verification techniques; and media monitoring techniques for misinformation published through social media, and sensitivity of Covid reporting.Participants were also provided with insights into the importance and strategies of misinformation, disinformation, mal-information prevention, and the use of infographics in reporting, as well as various means of enhancing national and international communication in health journalism.
ESPNcricinfo’s Mohamad Isam to conduct online sports journalism course
ESPNcricinfo’s Bangladesh correspondent Mohammad Isam is going to conduct a Sports Journalism workshop for the third time.
Lawrence Booth, editor of Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack, will attend the workshop as a guest speaker. The course will be conducted online .
READ: New Zealand opt to bat first in 4th T20I vs Bangladesh
A month-long Sports Writing Workshop, organised by sports website pavilion.com.bd and conducted by Mohammad Isam, will start in mid September.
The online aspect opens up the possibility of people outside Dhaka taking part in the course. There will be eight sessions this time, compared to four on the previous occasions. Lawrence Booth, editor of Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack, will be a guest speaker in one of the classes.
READ: To take the series, Tigers must dig deep against resurgent Kiwis
Around 40 participants took part in the first two chapters of the workshop in 2018 and 2019.
This workshop will cover various aspects of sports writing, a profession that is fast becoming popular in Bangladesh.
Journalist held under DSA in Bogura
Bogura district correspondent of the daily Banijya Pratidin, Aktaruzzaman has been sent to jail under Digital Security Act (DSA).
Bogura Detective Branch police (DB) arrested him from his home at around 3 am on Sunday.
He was arrested and sent to jail for allegedly posting a status on Facebook about Bogura Sadar Family Planning Officer Dr. Samir Hossain Mishu.
Also read: 3 journos sued under DSA in Thakurgaon, one held
Rafiqul Islam, the father of the journalist said, “At 3 am, 12 DB policemen and Dr. Samir Hossain Mishu came to my house and took away my son. They did not say what the allegations were.” "I made many requests but they did not release my son," he added.
Sadar Police Station OC Mohammad Selim Reza said Shamima Akhter, a clerk at the Sadar Upazila Family Planning Office, filed a case against the journalist under DSA.
Also read: Khulna journalist sent to jail in DSA case
Akhtaruzzaman was sent to jail through the court on Sunday afternoon, he said.
Bogura Union of Journalists president Mirza Selim Reza and general secretary Ganesh Das, issued a statement strongly condemning and protesting the arrest of journalist Akhtaruzzaman and demanding his immediate release.
4 journalists receive Dhaka Ahsania Mission anti-tobacco fellowship award
Four journalists have received fellowship awards in anti-tobacco journalism from Dhaka Ahsania Mission.
The names of the journalists – Masud Rumee (Kaler Kantho), Dolar Mehedi (71 TV), Jannatul Ferdous Panna (Amader Natun Somoy) and Md Akhtaruzzaman (Amader Orthoniti) – were announced at a virtual event Wednesday.
Lead Policy Advisor of Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids Bangladesh Md Mostafizur Rahman presided over the programme.
Also read: Speakers for amending Smoking and Tobacco Usage (Control) Act
Secretary of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting Md Mokbul Hossain was the chief guest and Zafar Wazed, director general of the Press Institute of Bangladesh, was a special guest at the ceremony.
Also Read: National Budget: Progga, ATMA for hiking tobacco goods
Also Read: Budget: Prices of tobacco products up, gold down
World Press Freedom Index and Retrogressive Bangladesh
World Press Freedom Index has placed Bangladesh in 152 this year. A total of 180 countries were still as always. Following Honduras, Bangladesh has secured its position with a score of 49.71 just before Turkey. Reporters Without Border – which is also known as Reporters sans frontières (RSF) – has ensured it on their web homepage on the last 20th April 2021. They mentioned the word “Tougher politics” while showing the reason for it. Besides, they added the consequences of the covid-19 pandemic. RSF also pointed the police and civilian violence against reporters. Thus, journalism got completely blocked or seriously impeded in 73 countries. It is just as devastating as coronavirus.
World Press Freedom Index at a glance
The Press Freedom Index is a yearly list for ranking of countries based on the freedom of journalism. An international non-Government organization named Reporters Without Border, shortly RSF, compile and publish the list. Since 2002, they have been releasing the list intending to safeguard the right to freedom of information. They mainly rank 180 countries based on the freedom of journalism.
Read Why press freedom matters
Survey Questionnaire
RSF develops the index through a survey of 87 questionnaires following the 7 general criteria.
1. Pluralism (Opinions in the media space)
2. Media independence
3. environment and self-censorship
4. legislative framework
5. Transparency
6. Infrastructure
7. Abuses
Read Prothom Alo senior reporter Rozina arrested under Official Secrets Act
The survey questionnaire focuses on the legal framework for the media including-
➢ the consequences for press offenses
➢ the way Government regulates the media
➢ the extent of independence of the public media
➢ uninterruptible information flow over the Internet
Read Rozina Islam: Journalism Vs the Colonial hangover of official secrecy
Survey Respondents
The survey respondents are the RSF’s partner organizations. They are 150 correspondents of 18 freedom of expression non-government organizations in five continents. A remarkable number of journalists, researchers, jurists, and human rights activists around the world also participate in this survey.
Scoring
RSF staffs monitor both the victims and the assailants of the press offenses to evaluate the final score. The victims are the journalists, netizens, and media assistants, while the violence may come from the state, armed militias, clandestine organizations, or pressure groups.
RSF send the survey questionnaire translated into 20 languages to the corresponding countries. They assign a score on each country based on the answers given.
Read: Top Bookstore Cafés in Dhaka: 6 Places Bringing Back the Joy of Reading
0 point is for the best while 100 points is for the worst. Accordingly, RSF has a colorful scoring map categorizing the press freedom status of countries.
➔ 0 to 15: Good (White)
➔ 15.01 to 25: Satisfactory (Yellow)
➔ 25.01 to 35: Problematic (Orange)
➔ 35.01 to 55: Difficult (Red)
➔ 55.01 to 100: Very Serious (Black)
Read Freedom of speech threatened in the name of Digital Security: TIB
World Press Freedom Index 2021 Toppers
1. Norway: Score → 6.72
2. Finland: Score → 6.99
3. Sweden: Score → 7.24
4. Denmark: Score → 8.57
5. Costa Rica: Score → 8.76
6. Netherlands: Score → 9.67
7. Jamaica: Score → 9.96
8. New Zealand: Score → 10.04
9. Portugal: Score → 10.11
10. Switzerland: Score → 10.55
Read Freedom of speech must not be undermined with false propaganda: PM
Underneath World Press Freedom Index 2021
1. Eritrea: Score → 81.45
2. North Korea: Score → 81.28
3. Turkmenistan: Score → 80.03
4. China: Score → 78.72
5. Djibouti: Score → 78.62
6. Vietnam: Score → 78.46
7. Iran: Score → 72.70
8. Syria: Score → 70.63
9. Laos: Score → 70.56
10. Cuba: Score → 63.94
Read World Press Freedom Index: Bangladesh slips one place to 151st
Bangladesh’s Whereabouts in World Press Freedom Index
The number 152 in the crowd of 180 with a score of 49.71 basically represents the level of freedom available for Bangladeshi journalists. In the last 10 years, Bangladesh’s scenario is as follows:
1. 2011 Ranking 112 Score → 54
2. 2012 Ranking 129 Score → 57
3. 2013 Ranking 144 Score → 42.01
4. 2014 Ranking 146 Score → 42.58
5. 2015 Ranking 146 Score → 42.95
6. 2016 Ranking 144 Score → 45.94
7. 2017 Ranking 146 Score → 48.36
8. 2018 Ranking 146 Score → 48.62
9. 2019 Ranking 150 Score → 50.74
10. 2020 Ranking 151 Score → 49.37
Last year, the coronavirus disaster and accompanying lockdown led to an alarming growth in police and civilian violence towards newshounds. Some journalists, bloggers, and cartoonists had been additionally arrested and prosecuted for his or her reporting of the pandemic and its effect on society. Under the Digital Security Act 2018 “bad propaganda” is punishable via way of means of up to fourteen years in prison. As a result, self-censorship has reached unparalleled ranges due to the fact editors are justifiably reluctant to hazard imprisonment or their media outlet’s closure.
Read: Watchdog: Media freedom has deteriorated during pandemic
However, despite this violence, there is also a length of speedy improvement for Bangladesh’s media marketplace, with many retailers taking part in each profitability and affect an increasing marketplace. Over the beyond decade, big privately-owned Bangladeshi agencies have moved into the marketplace and lots of the countrywide media is now inside the palms of the most important company organizations inside the country.
Final words
Regardless of World Press Freedom Index criticism, the circulation of information demands unconditional independence. However, it is needless to say that professional reporting requires minimum ethics. Otherwise, the knowledge may go beyond authenticity. A journalist must handle the power given to him carefully. Similarly, every government and non-government entity should cooperate with them spontaneously. And that is when the general people can expect the truth.
Read Future of journalism depends on adaptation, professionalism: Dr Arefin
Rozina Islam: Journalism Vs the Colonial hangover of official secrecy
Rozina Islam, a senior journalist at Bangladesh's most influential newspaper who was known for unearthing graft in the health sector, was probably feeling a sense of relief when she was entering the Secretariat on May 17 to get her second dose of the Covid-19 vaccine.
If only she knew that she would be the victim of another epidemic right at the heart of Bangladesh Civil Service, an epidemic caused by a virus which muzzles the freedom of the press through archaic and vague laws.
Rozina Islam was held at the Secretariat for five hours before being handed over to the police.
A case was filed against her by an official of the Health Ministry under the Official Secrets Act of 1923.
The British Era law, a sleeping monster which was never used against journalists in independent Bangladesh, was revived suddenly against the 42-year old journalist.
She is currently spending her days in Kashimpur Women’s Central Jail as a Dhaka court on Thursday fixed Sunday for passing an order on the bail petition filed by her lawyers.
Read Don’t judge Rozina issue emotionally: Info Minister to journalists
Colonial Inheritance of OSA
The Indian Official Secrets Act, 1904 was enacted during the time of Lord Curzon, Viceroy of India from 1899 to 1905.
It was an amended and more stringent version of The Indian Official Secrets Act (Act XIV) of 1889, brought in at a time when a large number of powerful newspapers had emerged in several languages across India, and the Swadeshi movement was just starting to emerge.One of the main purposes of the Act was to muzzle the voices of nationalist publications.
In April 1923, a newer version of the Official Secrets Act was notified. The Indian Official Secrets Act (Act No XIX of 1923) replaced the earlier Act and was extended to all matters of secrecy and confidentiality in governance in the country.
The Official Secrets Act that Bangladesh inherited upon its own independence is the exact replica of the 1923 - curiously no government has ever felt the need to amend it in order to be more time-befitting
The maximum punishment for an offence under OSA ranges from 14 years in prison all the way to death penalty.
Read ‘Independent media’ spreading lies against govt: Quader
What OSA deals with
The law broadly deals with two aspects — spying or espionage, which is dealt with in Section 3 of the Act, and disclosure of other secret information of the government, which is dealt with in Section 5. The secret information can be any official code, password, sketch, plan, model, article, note, document or information, derived from a prohibited place.
OSA and journalism in Bangladesh
UNB talked to Mahmudul Haque, Lecturer of Mass Communication and Journalism at Begum Rokeya University and a former senior journalist himself, about the buzz surrounding OSA and the arrest of Rozina Islam.
He takes the course, ‘Safety and Security of Journalists’, which is only available in a few universities of the country.
Mahmudul said that this colonial era law has been put to work for the first time in Bangladesh as a new tool to muzzle the freedom of press in Bangladesh alongside DSA.
He said that the incident delivered a message to the investigative journalists of the country in order to make them feel hesitant and fear being persecuted for their reports exposing corruption of the bureaucrats.
“Like most of the laws enacted to curb the freedom of journalists in the country, this law is so vague that it doesn't define secrets,” he said.
He feared that the use of OSA will deteriorate the status quo at a time where the culture of secrecy and self censorship among the journalists are already high.
Read It's very regrettable; nothing to hide: FM about Rozina issue
Faulty case
Mahmudul said that any information derived from a ‘prohibited’ place for the purpose of spying will be considered as an offence under OSA.
“The secretariat or the health ministry is not a prohibited place. Government itself provides ID’s to the journalists so that they can enter there to collect news,” he said.
Besides, when this law was enacted more than a hundred years ago, the political and social context were very different than the current time, he continued.
“It is highly unlikely that Rozina was collecting confidential state secrets as a foreign agent in an attempt to pass it over to enemies,” Mahmudul exclaimed.
When asked about the health minister’s statement where he said Rozina took snapshots of "secret documents related to purchasing vaccines," Mahmudul said purchasing vaccines can never be a secret matter related to national security.
“According to international laws, the people deserve to know about any bilateral treaty related to public health," he said.
Apart from OSA, she was also charged under sections 379 and 411 of the penal code.
"See, sections 379 and 411 deal with mere stealing and theft. This cannot coexist with OSA. So the entire process under which the FIR against her has been filed is faulty and I believe she will easily secure bail tomorrow."
Read Watchdog: Media freedom has deteriorated during pandemic
Can journalists be exempted from OSA
There is a popular school of thought circulating in social media that OSA is only for government officials or defence personnels and journalists cannot be taken to trial under this act.
When asked about this, Mahmudul said, "Unfortunately this is not the case."
He cited section 3A (1) of the OSA which stated, "No person shall, except under the authority of a written permit granted by or on behalf of the Government, make any photograph, sketch, plan, model, note or representation of any kind of any prohibited place or of any other place or area, notified by the Government as a place or area with regard to which such restriction appears to [the Government] to be expedient in the interests of the security of Bangladesh or of any part of or object in any such place or area"
So anybody, including journalists can be taken to court under OSA as the law explicitly mentions 'no persons'.
Contradicts with RTI
Right to Information Act 2009 (RTI Act) of Bangladesh has been promulgated recognising people's right to information as an inseparable part of the freedom of thought and conscience, and of speech.
Although it was initially appreciated as a significant step towards ensuring public participation and transparency at the time of its enactment, the effectiveness of the RTI Act has been questioned over the subsequent decade.
"The mere presence of OSA undermines the spirit of RTI and Article 39 of the constitution, which recognises freedoms of thought, conscience and speech as fundamental rights, " Mahmudul said.
"Besides, the Public Interest Information Disclosure (Provide Protection) Act, 2011 (The Whistleblowers Act) provides protection and safeguards to whistleblowers if the information is true and related to public interest," he added.
Laws like RTI and Public Interest Information Disclosure ACT will never be implemented properly as long as it coexists with laws like OSA and DSA, added Mahmudul.
Read Future of journalism depends on adaptation, professionalism: Dr Arefin
Example in Neighbouring country
"Although OSA has never been used against any journalists in independent Bangladesh, there are a few instances of it in our neighbouring country India," said Mahmudul Haque.
He said that Saikia, a journalist of the Financial Express of India was arrested in February 2015 in a similar case to Rozina where the police accused him of writing stories and analyses from documents allegedly stolen from the government. He was released on bail in May after spending 80 days in jail.
Additional sessions judge Inder Jeet Singh who had discharged Saikia relied on a 1996 Supreme Court verdict in the case of Sama Alana Abdulla versus the State of Gujarat, Singh said that the test of whether a certain disclosure compromised a secret depended on whether an "official code'' or "password'' had been divulged in terms of Section 5 of the Act, The Times of India had reported during the time.
The report stated that the court's liberal interpretation lessened the scope for misuse of the OSA by official machinery as it made a sharp distinction between a secret document or report dealing with day-to-day routine affairs and one containing information on the sensitive issue of national security.
A Delhi court in 2009 greatly reduced the power of OSA in a case filed against the same journalist over disclosing cabinet notes by passing a verdict that a document merely labelled "secret" shall not render the journalist liable under the law.
Read World Press Freedom Index and Retrogressive Bangladesh
All Colonial Era law should be scrapped
All the colonial era laws, not only the ones related to journalism, should be scrapped as they are against the spirit of our freedom, said Mahmudul Haque.
While most of the laws adopted in the three successor states of the British Raj do date from the colonial era, some draw particular ire for their history of having been used by the colonisers specifically to suppress dissent among the colonised.
One such example is the Contempt of Court Act, dating from 1926. It may be noted that in India and Pakistan, the Act was subsequently amended to fit in better with the changed context of the independent states. However Bangladesh still sticks with the 1926 text.
The offence of sedition, included in the Penal Code of 1860, still gets a lot of traction in all three successor states of the British Empire in the Indian Subcontinent, despite no longer being in the books in England itself since 2009.
The 1861 Police Act is also felt among activists to be more suited to maintaining control over a colonised population, as opposed to a civilian security force that is there to serve citizens in a democratic society.
Some of the most widely used colonial era laws that are deemed to curb freedoms include contempt of court
Mahmudul also said that Rozina and her family can file a case for wrongful confinement under the Penal Code against the concerned government officials if they believed she was being held at the secretariat against her will.
Besides,they can also bring charges against concerned officials under the Penal Code, or the Women and Children Anti-Repression Act 2000, if she was physically tortured or harassed while being held, he said.
Read Search is on for new leaders in journalism's upper echelons
Prothom Alo senior reporter Rozina arrested under Official Secrets Act
Rozina Islam, a senior female journalist of Prothom Alo was arrested on the charge of attempting to illegally “collect sensitive government documents and taking photos of them” from the Secretariat on Monday.
The Health Services Division filed a case against Rozina Islam with Shahbagh Police Station at night, said Harun ur Rashid, additional deputy commissioner (ADC) of Ramna Division of Dhaka Metropolitan Police.
The journalist rejected all the allegations and said she had been harassed inside the Secretariat.
Read Why press freedom matters
ADC Rashid said the journalist had been sued under the Official Secrets Act and sections 379 and 411 of The Penal Code.
Rozina was handed over to police around 9:45pm after being held at the Secretariat for over five hours.
Maidul Islam Pradhan, senior information officer at the Health Ministry, claimed that she had entered the room of the Private Secretary to the Secretary of Health Services Division between 3pm and 3:30pm “without permission”.
Read ‘Independent media’ spreading lies against govt: Quader
“She took photos of sensitive documents. Some of those were recovered from her by the staff of the Health Ministry, including the PS, Additional Secretary of the Ministry and police Constable Mizanur Rahman,” he claimed.
Health Secretary Lokman Hossain refused to speak to the media about the incident.
Watchdog: Media freedom has deteriorated during pandemic
There’s been a “dramatic deterioration” of press freedom since the pandemic started to tear across the world, Reporters Without Borders said in its annual report published Tuesday.
The group’s new World Press Freedom Index, which evaluated the press situations in 180 countries, painted a stark picture and concluded that 73% of the world’s nations have serious issues with media freedoms.
It says countries have used the coronavirus pandemic, which erupted in China in late 2019, “as grounds to block journalists’ access to information, sources and reporting in the field.”
Also read: Media Freedom Coalition concerned over Myanmar military’s efforts to muzzle media
This is particularly the case in Asia, the Mideast and Europe, the media group said.
“Journalism is the best vaccine against disinformation,” RSF secretary-general Christophe Deloire said. “Unfortunately, its production and distribution are too often blocked by political, economic, technological and, sometimes, even cultural factors. In response to the virality of disinformation across borders, on digital platforms and via social media, journalism provides the most effective means of ensuring that public debate is based on a diverse range of established facts.”
Also read: Bangladesh drops one notch in World Press Freedom Index
Issues have also arisen from a drop in public trust in journalism itself. The group said 59% of people polled in 28 countries claimed that journalists “deliberately try to mislead the public by reporting information they know to be false.”
Facebook blocks Australians from accessing news on platform
Facebook announced Thursday it has blocked Australians from viewing and sharing news on the platform because of proposed laws in the country to make digital giants pay for journalism.